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15% of Facebook users would be willing to pay more than $5 to see no ads

Fifteen per cent of Facebook users would be happy to pay to see no ads appear on their feeds, according to a survey by Greenlight.
The survey comes following the comments made by Twitter co-founder Biz Stone, who suggested Facebook could make $1bn a month if just 10 per cent of its global users signed up to a premium service where users pay $10 to see no ads.
The Drum spoke to Arena’s Mark Holden, head of futures, who said it was an unlikely move for Facebook as social media users have now come to expect a free service and are subsequently willing to put up with “annoying” ads.
However, Greenlight’s poll of 500 people showed 15 per cent of users would be prepared to pay Facebook to see no ads with the majority, eight per cent, indicating they would be willing to spend $5 right up to $10 and even over.
The results of the survey came ahead of Facebook’s financial results for the second quarter, which exceeded analysts’ expectations. The site generate $1.6bn in revenue from advertising, with $655.6m coming from mobile ads.
The survey was part of Greenlight’s global annual 'Search & Social Survey (2012-2013)' which asked 500 people across a range of professions how they engage with online advertising, search engines, and social networks.